Harpies
Harpies are a very common enemy seen in the ''God of War'' series. They are monsters with the heads of hideous, deformed women, and the bodies of either bats or birds. They usually appear in large groups to attack Kratos. Individually weak, they can easily overpower Kratos as part of a group attack. They attack by biting and slashing Kratos with their fangs and talons. Also, they can stand on Kratos' shoulders and bite his face. In addition, it was the harpies that delivered the Blades of Chaos to Kratos through Ares' command. Greek Mythology A Harpy, or Harpies, are creatures from Greek myth. Their name means "snatcher" and they are depicted as being part bird and part woman. In the story of Jason, when the Argonauts reached the court of Phineus of Salmydessus in Thrace, Zeus sent the Harpies to steal the food put out for Phineas each day. Jason took pity on the emaciated king and killed the Harpies when they returned. God of War Series Ascension Harpies appear throughout the game to attack Kratos in his quest to destroy the Furies. The standard harpy encountered in this game behaves exactly like its God of War III counterpart. They're minor enemies and appeared in Village of Kirra, and Temple of Delphi. In addition, Harpy Queens appear to attack Kratos later on. They possess an aerial projectile attack to harass the Ghost of Sparta from afar. They can be grabbed and flung to damage enemies, or when their health is low enough, Kratos will lift them into the air and rip off one of their wings, and discard the corpse. Both versions of Harpy appear in the Multiplayer. In Trial of the Gods, standard Harpies appeared in the Forum of Hercules and Desert of Lost Souls, while the Harpy Queen appears in the Desert of Lost Souls, later updated in Coliseum of Persia, and Labyrinth of Daedalus. Chains of Olympus Kratos encounters smaller, younger versions of these beast called Harplings, as well as flocks of Cursed Harpies, throughout his journey in parts of the Underworld, including Asphodel and Tartarus. They appear and fight similar to the standard Harpies, except they are slightly stronger. God of War Harpies are the infamous servants of God of War, Ares, who once brought his gift, the Blades of Chaos, to Kratos. In-game, he encounters them the first time while protecting his fleet from Hydra and the undead. Kratos can easily kill them by grabbing them, throwing them to the ground, and ripping off both of their wings. Later in the game, he encounters more of them as a part of Ares' army. It was the harpies who spotted Kratos in Pandora's Temple and alerted Ares, who then took immediate actions against Kratos. Additionally, a group of Harpies serve the Body Burner by bringing him the corpses of those who died in the Temple to burn on his pyre. Ghost of Sparta Kratos encounters icy Harpy Widows, primarily in the Mounts of Aroania. They are similar to normal Harpies, except they can also freeze Kratos with their breath. God of War II The beasts reappear, as well as new, slightly stronger types later on in the games, including a fiery version from the Underworld called Hades Harpy. Cursed Harpies appear as well, sporting dark, gray leathery hides. They are exactly the same as a regular Harpy in attack and flight capability. Harpies occasionally appear in large flocks during the points in the game when Kratos rides the Pegasus. Then, they are the very first enemies that Kratos fights on foot, with his weakened Blades of Athena, in the Lair of Typhon. There are other several moments when Kratos fights them on foot, usually accompanying stronger enemies (like a Titan Minotaur, or Hades Legionnaires), as he makes his way through the Island of Creation. God of War III Kratos again encounters a lot of Harpies, this time in direct service to protect the Gods. They possess a powerful, radial dive bomb attack, that appears similar to that of a Fire Harpy. There is also a stronger version called a Harpy Queen which Kratos can use as grapple points. Species Harpy Queen Unlike their lesser Harpy counterparts, Harpy Queens can actually be of use to Kratos. Once within range, Kratos can use his blades to grapple onto a Harpy Queen, and then take control of it. On occasions, grappling Harpy Queens is the only way for Kratos to cross large gaps. Once you reach the other side of a gap and jump, Kratos will also rip the Harpy Queen in half, effectively killing it. At certain points, however, Harpy Queens respawn, in case Kratos is in further need of their 'service'. On certain occasions, a Harpy Queen will perhaps be out of Kratos' reach, and will not even notice the Spartan warrior. When this happens, Kratos must first 'agitate' the Harpy Queen by shooting it with the Bow of Apollo. Once struck by the arrows, the Harpy Queen will begin flying towards Kratos, and into the reach of his Blades of Exile. In God of War: Ascension, the green Harpy Queens are now active enemies, attacking Kratos with projectiles and ability to strike at him. Kratos can grab them and throw them away, or into enemies, and when their health is low enough, he will rip off one of the wings and toss the Harpy away. Harpy Queen can also try to swift/landing at Kratos if they're attacking with their bare hands. If the Spartan doesn't evade the attack, the Harpy Queen will strike at him fiercely and harm him. However, Kratos' arms aren't restrained, and he can still shake-off. Thus, he must grab and stab the beast's chest instantly and discard the corpse. If Kratos isn't shake-off and runs out of health when a Harpy Queen is still pecking, it will devour him one last time, slam him to the floor and ready to coup de grace, killing him. The result is Game over. In Trial of the Gods, the Harpy Queen appears in the Desert of Lost Souls, later updated in Coliseum of Persia, and Labyrinth of Daedalus. Fire Harpy Fire Harpies are a more advanced version of the standard Harpy. They have essentially the same strength and attacks, plus a new ability in which they set alight and deliver a dive bomb attack at Kratos from above. Kratos can kill them the same way he kills standard Harpies. Hades Harpy Hades Harpies are an enemy seen throughout the God of War series. Usually seen in the Underworld, these creatures are similar to a Fire Harpy in health and attack capability, but they also appear to be covered in flames. Kratos can kill them the same way he can kill standard Harpies. In God of War, Kratos encounters them as he crossed the Path of Hades to escape the Underworld. In God of War II, he deals with them as he climbs Atlas, and also at spots around the Phoenix Chamber in the Palace of the Fates. Cursed Harpy Cursed Harpies are a type of Harpy seen throughout the God of War series. They are encountered in the depths of the Underworld, particularly in the depths of Tartarus and in the Temple of Persephone, and in the skies above the Island of Creation. Their attacks are identical to the standard Harpies, and Kratos can kill them by the same means. Harpling More commonly known as "baby Harpies", they appear as a small bird-like creature, attacking Kratos by swooping and diving at him in flocks. They mostly appear in the Temple of Helios. Kratos can kill them by grabbing it, throwing it to the ground, and stomping on it with his foot. There's also a stronger version Kratos faces later on called a Cursed Harpling. Cursed Harpling These are similar to the standard Harpling, except they are stronger, and have a more vicious appearance. Kratos encounter flocks of them in places such as Asphodel and the Temple of Persephone. Their attack styles are the same as that of the standard Harpling and are killed in the same way as well. Harpy Widow Harpy Widows' bodies consist entirely out of ice. They appear in flocks and primarily reside upon the Mounts of Aroania. They attack Kratos not only by swooping at him but by blowing icy mist as well. This mist, if not properly avoided, can freeze Kratos, leaving him susceptible to other attacks. Fire Harpling These small fiends are very similar to the standard Harplings, except that their entire bodies are engulfed in searing flames. They often appear in large flocks, and attack Kratos by flying over him and delivering a dive-bomb attack from above. Like the standard Harplings, Kratos can kill these foes by grabbing them, throwing them to the ground, and stomping them to death with his foot. Gallery Harpy.JPG Harpy (God of War Ghost of Sparta).jpg|Harpy in God of War: Ghost of Sparta Fire Harpling.jpg Harpy VS Warrior.jpg|Harpy Queen in Multiplayer Harpy 1.jpg|Harpy Cursed Harpy.jpg|Cursed Harpy Hades Harpy.jpg|Hades Harpy god_of_war_light_harpy_by_nichtelf-d41hcgf.jpg|Concept art: Light Harpy (God of War: Ghost of Sparta) 6-Harpy.jpg|Harpy (God of War III) render 15-Harpy_Queen.jpg|Harpy Queen model Harpy by Izzy.JPG|Concept art: Harpy Queen (God of War III & God of War: Ascension) harpy_dark.jpg|3D-model: Harpy (God of War: Ascension) bryan-wynia Harpy.jpg|T-model: Harpy (God of War: Ascension) Harpy Bryan Closeup.jpg gow3-harpy-heads.jpg Trivia *In an early trailer for God of War III, there is a point when Kratos grapples with a Harpy. Though the Harpy looks quite different from the Harpy Queens in the actual game, the way Kratos controls it and rips it apart is very similar. *In the Deleted Levels video for God of War, it was revealed that the Harpies originally acted like the Undead Legionnaires, but were redesigned to be more of a small, quick "annoyance type" enemy. *In God of War, killing a Harpy by grabbing it won't give Kratos any red orbs, while it does in God of War II. *The harpies, in general, are more "annoying" than dangerous since they mostly scream at the player and deliver weak attacks. *The standard Harpies in Ghost of Sparta are identical to the Cursed Harpies in Chains of Olympus. *Originally, there was going to be a harpy boss fight in the first God of War game however it was cut for time reasons. *Harpies appear as weak enemies in Bit of War. 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